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Mafia Wiki:Disambiguation
Disambiguation is a tool for resolving conflicts with similar page names. With three Mafia Games as well as their Downloadable Content there are bound to be instances where the names of characters, places, or items are reused. Disambiguation helps readers and editors find the page they're looking for without causing confusion. Definition If a given term can refer to multiple articles (i.e. if it is "ambiguous"), the articles should be moved to non-ambiguous (or "disambiguated") titles. A disambiguation page (a page which links to all possible articles) should then be placed at the ambiguous title. Types of Disambiguation There are three basic types of disambiguation pages. *Sub-topic disambiguation: many small articles of just a paragraph or so each can exist together on a single page, separated by headings. **However, as each section grows, there may come a time when one or more must have its own page. *Equal disambiguation: all articles are moved to distinct names, and the main page becomes a disambiguation page. *Primary topic disambiguation: if one meaning is clearly predominant, it remains at the general title and the top of the article will give links to the other meanings. Specific Article Guidelines *In some cases, information can utilize one page and be broken down with headers for each game; Mafia Series Cultural References is a good example of this. It lists all the noteworthy cultural references on one page broken down by game. *In other instances, it may be desirable to create a disambiguation page that expresses the general principles of the topic, while serving as a directory to more specific articles on those topics. Protagonist is an example of this. It contains a general definition of a protagonist, gives a brief description of each protagonist in the Mafia series, and links to the specific character pages for each game. *However, in most cases a disambiguation page with links to individual pages is appropriate. Vehicles is a good example of this. Setting up a Disambiguation Before setting up a disambiguation, make sure there are at least two topics that require the same name. Never set up a disambiguation to cover future possibilities. Once a need for disambiguation is established, the following steps should be taken. :For this tutorial, we'll use the example of a Smith Thunderbolt, a vehicle currently in Mafia II. *If Mafia III has a vehicle of that same name, the first step is to create a page with the name "Smith Thunderbolt (Mafia III)" and fill out all the information as you would when creating any new page. *Once that page has been published, go back to the original Smith Thunderbolt page containing the Mafia II version and click "Rename" from the drop down menu. *Type the new name "Smith Thunderbolt (Mafia II)" into the box provided. *Once that page has been renamed, simply go back to the original "Smith Thunderbolt" page, remove the redirect tag, and make it into a disambiguation by typing at the top, then create links to the other pages. When finished it should look like this: may refer to one of the following: *Smith Thunderbolt (Mafia II) *Smith Thunderbolt (Mafia III) Differentiating Page Names Selecting the proper format to set page names apart can be a confusing task, so if you're new to this wiki or simply not sure how best to set two pages apart you may want to leave it up to the more experienced editors or admins of this wiki. Below are some general guidelines; however, there may be situations not covered here, so if you're unsure contact an admin for further advice. *For pages with large lists of items, like characters, vehicles, and missions, just use the format Characters in Mafia II, Vehicles in Mafia III. *For individual characters, missions, and items, use the game name in parentheses, as in (Mafia), (Mafia II), or (Mafia III). **For the first game, always use the short title (Mafia), and not (Mafia: The City of Lost Heaven). *When two names are shared within the same game you need to find another way to separate them, such as in Mafia II where you have two songs entitled Rock Around the Clock, one by Hal Singer and one by Bill Haley & His Comets. In cases like this you can use the last names of the performers in parentheses to distinguish the two, as in Rock Around the Clock (Singer) and Rock Around the Clock (Haley). **Other descriptive terms you can use are (Character), (Mission), (Business), or (Location). Categorization Adding the template automatically adds a disambiguation page to Category:Disambiguation Pages. Other than this, no other categories should exist on the page. Fixing links The final step in disambiguation is correcting all the old links associated with the process. Articles linking to disambiguation pages present an unnecessary step in the reader's experience, so whenever possible take the time to correct them. *Click on to bring up a listing of every page that has a link to the one you're on. In some instances there can be dozens or even hundreds of pages linking to it; all of them need to be corrected. *Disambiguated links can look sloppy on the page and present an unnecessary distraction to the reader. To prevent this you will need to create what's referred to as a Piped link. The pipe character is the vertical bar ( | ) typically located on the key directly below the backspace key. To create a piped link use the following format: Vehicles. This method will change the link's appearance on the page from Vehicles in Mafia II to simply Vehicles. **Do not use piped links on the disambiguation page itself. **This method may not work in some galleries, references, or various templates. Category:Help Pages Disambiguation Pages Below is a list of disambiguation pages on the Mafia Wiki. Feel free to use them as an example for setting up other disambiguation pages.